24 Comments

What a fun list of evening activities to do during the day. It makes me imagine a sleepover that starts at noon with pajamas and movies. I also appreciate you writing about periods, which are so common and yet never talked about. So bizarre when you think about it. And congrats on Lit 50!

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Thank you and thank you!

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I love that you made a period zine called Period! In 2000, I was 16 and making a zine (my first, and last, for 20 years) that included a toy review for a robot dog, and complaining about people criticizing Tinky Winky the Teletubby. Also, Lindt has a vegan chocolate bar?

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I never made copies, I suppose it was secret just for me. But thank you for asking the title, I'd forgotten til now - Yeshy! A version of the word yes that my friend and I used. It's somewhere in a box at my parents house, I hope to see it again someday.

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Hurrah for childhood zines. I had one called “The saguaro times” which ran for probably over a year. Even had guest contributors! My mom recently found one and it was so fun to see again.

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I also made like family newspapers when I was little! I wonder if this is a common childhood experience?

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Oh man we should compile these somehow.

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Congrats on being included in the Lit 50!

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dear sophie,

thank you for sharing all of this!

here are some of my favorite lines out of many:

"A little something can make a big difference"

"Every turn was my turn"

"An evening in the afternoon can take five minutes"

"I would recommend pineapple"

lots of others too!

thank you as always for sharing!

love,

myq

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Thank YOU as always for reading!

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Period chat: My Mum had no idea about periods when she started. Went to the loo on a school trip, thought she was dying. My Grandma (who is actually very much not "stuck in her time" on so many other issues) still grunts disapprovingly when she sees ads for sanitary products on TV. Definitely thinks periods should never be discussed.

Meanwhile my cousin, who definitely got sex-ed at school, somehow ended up certain that girls woke up on their 13th birthday with fully formed boobs which come in overnight. She woke up most disappointed!

I adore having a bubble bath in the afternoon. Especially great on cloudy days if I can drift off and watch the weather moving while I am totally stationery. Tea/wine/crisps optional bonus extras.

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Please forgive me if this is inappropriate, but:

- I love your glasses!

- You have a wonderful face!

Also, period chat is rad. And that s'more made me want a s'more REAL BAD.

Okay, carry on.

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Congrats on Lit 50 - so cool, and great photos! Loved all the "evening in the afternoon" ideas. Will have to think about this more!

Yes to frustrations about no one ever talking about periods! And I hate to tell you this, but if you think periods are under-discussed, wait until you realize how little people talk about perimenopause. I have become the obnoxious friend that tells my other 40'ish friends about how we need to talk about this more, because I had NO idea that the symptoms would be so all consuming and last so long. The lack of preparation and information was really, really bad, because I thought it was just "you get a few hot flashes, you're grumpy, and then the period goes away." It's so much more involved than that, and I wish we all talked about (and normalized!) this part of life too. Maybe I need to start a "Peri" zine? :)

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I have to say, I too was very surprised to find that there was nothing about periods that were as I’d been led to believe from the ads in Seventeen Magazine.

Allie, you are SO RIGHT that, in the march of "wow bodies are wild!" there is very little discussion of perimenopause! Either that, or people were talking about it and maybe I made a little talky mouth with my hand and dismissed it as just more blah blah blah?

I agree that you should start a Peri zine! I am preparing my 4th issue of one that started as a companion piece to Peri/Meno discussion groups I held at the bookstore where I was working at the time. Let me tell you, getting a bunch of menstruating and formerly menstruating people together to share tips and tricks and commiserations is just absolutely enlivening! And so, so helpful. More helpful than any of the dozen books I've read, I think.

For me, perimenopause is like puberty all over again, but with a bunch of adult responsibilities heaped on top. Perimenopause is when everything becomes topsy turvy and I cope by thinking about which hormones are coursing through my system at which times. When I bleed (which is just as unpredictable as it was when I was 13), it’s different every time, different distances apart. And the ovarian cramps around ovulation are like my body is a ketchup bottle and there’s only a little ketchup left inside.

This is very long and I could go on and on and on, but I won't. We should all somehow write a zine together, maybe?

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So cool that you've been making a zine on this already! Is there anywhere to view it/purchase online? I'm glad you had a support group for discussions. That sounds amazing! Completely agree with the puberty comparison - it's so confusing and unpredictable, and it feels like you have to just figure it out as you go. And the ketchup bottle!! So accurate!! Thanks for this post :)

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Hi Allie! The zines can be found here: https://superdilettante.square.site/

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Yay! I'm checking these out and will definitely order one soon. I saw you're on Insta and will follow too. I'm [at]acdavis17 (collage/Polaroid/cyanotype art). So glad to know about your work!

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Just sitting here basking in appreciation that you are here. Thank you!

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I’m glad you’ve connected with my reader who emailed me about her Perimenopause zine! Because of the two of you, I’ve been reading up about this a lot more than I would have without you. Thank you. Wow, is it ever hard and weird to have a body.

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Yes, so weird!! Glad we've inspired some reading although I hope it won't be too stressful. I just keep telling myself - this is a normal body thing, and it will end some day, eventually :)

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😁 funny story, my partner and I signed our marriage paperwork at an arboretum in February 💞

An evening thing I do in the afternoon sometimes is read in bed. Sometimes I set a timer. Sometimes I devour the entire book in one sitting.

I would also like to add that morning things at night can have a similar effect. Like breakfast for dinner.

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Yes to talking about periods more! My periods have also never been polite or delicate, and my life changed so much for the better when I discovered diva cups and period underwear. I am so glad they are mainstream and (mostly) affordable now!

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I also have an IUD and just let all of my underwear be underwear that I can spot in! Hooray! And I love the idea of evening in the afternoon. I've been meaning to make a fire in my backyard firepit for EVER - I piled a bunch of wood from some tree trimming the landlord did back in the FALL for it! Under my carport! So it would be dry for all of the lovely firepit fires I was gonna have! So maybe some afternoon I'll have a lil fire in my backyard.

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